Our Story

The land

All of Double Hill’s 365 acres has a southern exposure which makes it ideal for growing fruit trees. The farm is named Double Hill because of a small ravine that bisects the land into two gentle hills. The sandy soil can quickly dry out in the summer. We, therefore, keep plenty of organic matter in the soil. While our ciders are not certified organic, we believe in organic practices: We use certified organic soil amendments and do not spray for pesticides. Many of our wild apple trees are part of the original hedgerows we have amended with native plants to encourage more wildlife.

THE ORCHARD

The orchard is exclusively used for growing cider apples. We have planted varieties such as Kingston Black, Dabinett, Yarlington Mills, Bulmers Norman, Douce Moen, Rouge Duret, Petit Jaune, Douce Coet Lignee, Medaille D’or, Somerset Redstreak, Cap of Liberty, and others. A significant part of the orchard however is dedicated to grafting the very best of the local wild apples onto semi-standard rootstock. Each year, we identify more wild trees for their cider making qualities. Their juices get tested in a lab for sugar, acidity and phenolic properties and if the tree is of good quality, we take cuttings from it to be transplanted to Double Hill.

THE CIDERS

We make old world and new world ciders. The idea for a cidery was born when we tasted French Cider for the first time. We loved the freshness and the complexity of these ciders.

We also make North American ciders, not bound by tradition and free to experiment with many different ingredients.

THE CIDER MAKERS

The cidery is the brainchild of its founder, Sebastian Manago. He fell in love with ciders when he studied in France.

The operations manager is Bryan McCracken. He can turn any crazy idea into reality.

The land

All of Double Hill’s 365 acres has a southern exposure which makes it ideal for growing fruit trees. The farm is named Double Hill because of a small ravine that bisects the land into two gentle hills. The sandy soil can quickly dry out in the summer. We, therefore, keep plenty of organic matter in the soil. While our ciders are not certified organic, we believe in organic practices: We use certified organic soil amendments and do not spray for pesticides. Many of our wild apple trees are part of the original hedgerows we have amended with native plants to encourage more wildlife.

THE ORCHARD

The orchard is exclusively used for growing cider apples. We have planted varieties such as Kingston Black, Dabinett, Yarlington Mills, Bulmers Norman, Douce Moen, Rouge Duret, Petit Jaune, Douce Coet Lignee, Medaille D’or, Somerset Redstreak, Cap of Liberty, and others. A significant part of the orchard however is dedicated to grafting the very best of the local wild apples onto semi-standard rootstock. Each year, we identify more wild trees for their cider making qualities. Their juices get tested in a lab for sugar, acidity and phenolic properties and if the tree is of good quality, we take cuttings from it to be transplanted to Double Hill.

THE CIDERS

We make old world and new world ciders. The idea for a cidery was born when we tasted French Cider for the first time. We loved the freshness and the complexity of these ciders.

We also make North American ciders, not bound by tradition and free to experiment with many different ingredients.

THE CIDER MAKERS

The cidery is the brainchild of its founder, Sebastian Manago. He fell in love with ciders when he studied in France.

The operations manager is Bryan McCracken. He can turn any crazy idea into reality.

HOW WE MAKE OUR CIDER